Pieter Gerritsz Van Roestraten (1627, 1698) Attributed. Still Life

Pieter Gerritsz van Roestraten (1627, 1698) attributed. Still life, precious objects on an entablature.

Linen canvas 81 cm by 64 cm
Old frame 102 cm by 88 cm

The artist offers us a superb still life with precious objects on a partially covered entablature. We discover around an open book, a sumptuous silver ewer, a vermeil plinth, porcelain and Delft ceramics, a rich candle snuffer, a candle holder, luxurious glassware ...

Pieter Gerritsz van Roestraten (1627, 1698)

Pupil of Frans Hals whose daughter he married in 1654, he lived in Harlem and Amsterdam before moving to London on a date uncertain between 1660 and 1666, when he was seriously injured in the great fire in the city. It is assumed that it was introduced to King Charles II through the intermediary of the painter Peter Lely, another Dutchman, living in London and specialist in portraits. Roestraten abandoned his specialty at the time, genre scenes, to devote himself to still lifes, mainly featuring goldsmiths and precious materials. These ceremonial still lifes met with great success due to the talent of Pieter Gerritsz van Roestraten in rendering textures on metals and jewelry. He will often represent the same objects by only changing the composition to highlight one aspect rather than another depending on the desired effect.